


Ambush by Moonlight

by SephyAthredon



Series: SephyAthredon Whumptober 2020 [4]
Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Gen, On the Run, Protective Zack, Shinra refugees, Shinra troopers - Freeform, Sleep Deprivation, Whumptober 2020, blood mention, mako poisoned Cloud, prompt number 5
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:53:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27212986
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SephyAthredon/pseuds/SephyAthredon
Summary: On the second night on the run from Shinra, Zack is exhausted from lack of sleep and the moment he tries to rest, things take a turn for the worst. An entry for Whumptober under the prompt "On the Run".
Relationships: Zack Fair & Cloud Strife
Series: SephyAthredon Whumptober 2020 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1992352
Kudos: 22





	Ambush by Moonlight

It had been sometime since the two of them left Nibelhiem. Thanks to a friend of Zack’s, he had a set of wheels to make their escape easier than it would have been normally. Since that night, a full day had come and gone and they were back under the cover of nightfall. 

Zack hadn’t taken a rest at all and, while he was driving, he kept glancing to the sidecar of the motorcycle. This was partially to ensure that Cloud was still there, but mostly it was because he hoped that his best friend would wake up from the coma he had been put in.

It was only because of his blurring eyesight and growling stomach that he decided to take a rest, pulling off of the dirt path he had been following through the canyon. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much cover in the canyon, due to it’s lack of trees. He parked the motorcycle against one of the walls of the canyon, hoping that they’ll at least be a little concealed there. That was to be their camp.

After a half an hour of Zack trying to hunt something, he finally scored a hit, dragging a Nibel Wolf back to the spot where he was going to set up camp.

Soon enough, he had a campfire going and was cooking up his catch, having set Cloud against the edge of the wall, where he could keep an eye on him. As Zack waited on the food, he found his gaze wandering, eventually going over to Cloud who stared into the fire with hazy, unfocused eyes. 

A while later and he called out his friend’s name, “Hey Cloud! Time to eat!” He made sure to feed the other before himself, not that Cloud really had the capacity to care who went first. 

After they ate, the two of them just sat together, under the protection of the canyon’s wall. Zack had his right arm around Cloud and was talking to him non-stop.

“Y’Know Cloud… I never thought I’d be on the run from Shinra. I joined the company when I was thirteen. I was so eager to prove myself to the world… prove I could be a Hero… I wonder if that dream is still achievable… ah well… We’ve got plenty of time. Once we get to Midgar, we’ll hide from Shinra right under their noses and when this all blows over, who knows what’ll happen, right?” He looked down at Cloud.

The man didn’t move.

“Anyway, I should probably stop rambling. I’m pretty exhausted, so we should get some sleep.”

There was no objection from Cloud as Zack put out the fire and moved Cloud so he was behind him, laying them both down. Zack had debated with himself if he should sleep facing the wall so the Cloud was more protected, sandwiched between him and the wall. If he slept like this, then his back would be open to attack.

That’s why he ultimately decided to have his back against the wall, Cloud in his arms. The blonde was less protected that way, but he could see the landscape ahead of him and there was no way he was going to let Cloud sleep somewhere where Zack couldn’t see. The Buster sword lay perpendicular to them for Zack to easily grab in case they were caught. 

Sleep came easily to Zack, even with such uncomfortable sleeping arrangements. It came so easily, that he almost didn’t catch the sound of heavy footsteps nearby. Opening his eyes, all he saw were rows of Shinra trooper boots standing around him in a semicircle. 

“Oh come on, can’t I get a break?” He mumbled to himself, letting go of Cloud and picking up his sword as he slowly stood up, ready to counter should one of his assailants make a move. One of them shot at him in a panic and Zack responded by blocking the gunshots with his sword and stepping over Cloud to slash at the opposing grunt. 

One by one, he cut them all down, until there were only a couple left. When he finished off one of the last ones, he heard the voice of one behind him.

“Come quietly, or I’ll shoot.”

Zack assumed the man was saying he’ll shoot him, but he was proven wrong as he turned around and saw that the Infantryman held his gun against Cloud’s head.

Though Zack was breathing heavily from exhaustion, he bared his teeth.

“Don’t you dare.” He growled out. 

“Don’t test me.” The other man matched his tone.

“Okay, okay!” Zack dropped the Buster sword, holding up his hands, “Just don’t hurt him.”

The trooper nodded, taking his gun away from Cloud for a moment to haul him up to his feet. It didn’t take him long to realize that the man lacked the will to even stand and instead, he was flung over the trooper’s shoulder, The gun was pointed to Zack instead as the man radioed his positon.

More infantrymen will be swarming the area within seconds, he needed to think fast.

In a last ditch attempt for survival, Zack threw all his weight onto the guard and it worked for a moment, the guard toppling to the ground.

It worked for a moment, until the gun went off.

Fortunately, the bullet only grazed Cloud’s shoulder as he fell to the ground with the trooper, but Zack saw blood and assumed the worst.

“How dare you!” His voice was anguished as he hit the trooper with everything he had, “How dare you shoot him!” His voice was filled with rage and he didn’t stop until the trooper was unrecognizable. Once everything went quiet, he stood up, legs shaking from a mixture of exhaustion and fear.

It was only when he went to examine Cloud that he realized that the bullet had only grazed him.

“Oh thank the lifestream…” He let out a sigh of relief, holding Cloud tightly against his chest, “I thought I lost you…” Although he wanted to spend a few more moments holding Cloud against him, Zack’s mind was screaming at him to run, that there were going to be more Infantrymen in the area in a matter of minutes.

He took a moment to clean and dress Cloud’s wound with whatever he had on hand and then lifted him, placing him into the sidecar once more. He took a moment to retrieve the Buster sword before returning to Cloud’s side.

“You up for another trip, spiky? Of course you are.” He smiled to the other, hopping onto the driver seat.

They left just as the sun was coming up.


End file.
